Every generation thinks the next generation has it easier than they did and worse than they are. The “Millennials” (Generation Y) are no different. As a member of Generation X, I see the next generation as intelligent, well educated, and for the most part well informed; but I also see them as entitled, lacking focus, and emotionally soft. Like it or not, this generation is here to stay, and everyone will have to adjust and learn to interact with them to be successful. There are numerous causes for the reason “Millennials” act the way they do, and this essay will cover a few of them. The evolution of our society, the focus on a happy family, and technology has helped define this generation’s approach to life. Society has an immense impact on every generation’s outlook on life. The society of today is one that attempts to keep everyone happy. We want everyone to be comfortable and ensure no one feels left out. The earliest experiences this generation had in team sports were tee-ball and soccer games that did not keep score and ensured everyone got an at bat each inning. They were told there are no losers, and they were all winners. This has carried over in their lives as they grew older, and led to the constant need to be told they have done a good job. At some point, parents became more cheerleader than parent, and some members of generation Y would like their bosses to be more cheerleader than boss. People will fail to meet an objective from time to time and
As generations go by, our predecessors assume we are skipping out on important aspects of life just to get a few extra minutes on our devices. In Catherine Rampell’s “A Generation of Slackers? Not So Much”, it is said the older generations believe Generation Y is “coddled, disrespectful, narcissistic, and impatient” (Rampell 388). In all reality our generation is just doing what it has to in order to thrive in the world we live in, where technology is one of the largest parts of our everyday lives. If the older generations that criticize Generation Y had grown up in Generation Y they would realize the world we live in requires the use of technology. The advancement of society with technology has shaped Generation Y to be the people that they are, relying on technology; however, older generations believe Generation Y is lazy.
In the article, Declining Student Resilience, Peter Gray states, “There has been an increase in diagnosable mental health problems, but there has also been a decrease in the ability of many young people to manage the everyday bumps in the road of life”. It has come up a lot that millennials do not have Grit, unlike other generations. Millennials come off as lazy or immature in society today. Millennials always have a reminder from their parents or grandparents, “back in my day....” or “you’re lucky, you have it easy”. Other generations give millennials a harder time on how they are performing in a school setting. Some generations believe that millennials are babied by their parents. Everyone has their own opinions about other generations. There are many similarities and differences between millennials and other generations on how they performed in schools. Some examples of how they are different and similar are work ethic, pressures, and technology. These examples come from actual opinions from millennials and other generations on their perspectives when comparing millennials and other generations in a school setting.
In the article “The Beat Up Generation,” Abby Ellin claims that the negative way other generations view the millennials may all be wrong; instead, the millennials are preparing for the world most generations are opposing. Ellin declares in her article that the millennials are shown to be the most disliked generation; their ideas collide with those in the Baby Boomers and the Gen-Xers causing confusion. Constantly, Articles are being thrown out about the millennials “incompetence” and their “self-absorbed” behavior which only causes more hatred according to Ellin. However, she continues to state that millennials are no more selfish than the previous generations; in fact, millennials are only trying to discover new ways for “communication and
The first major liability of the United States was that no one had ever established a
This book is a sequel to the Generations book by the same authors. It is very optimistic about the potential and qualities of the Millennial generation. For instance, they are born in an era when children were viewed more positively, they are more optimistic, cooperative, accepting of authority, rule followers, are the most watched over generation, smart, and believe they can change the future.
At every turn there are talks about millennials. Whether it be a meme on the internet mocking them or a serious article addressing possible issues that involve their futures. As David Brooks argues in his article, ‘It’s Not About You’, if millennials are going to be successful in life then they have to realize that not everything is about them. Brooks’ claim effectively appeals to the audience’s emotions, yet he fails to explain the logic in his argument and build his credibility. Pointing out the many problems that millennials may face as they start life on their own, Brooks elicits many emotions from his audience.
Joel Kotkin does not eschew controversy in the title of his essay "Are the Millennials the Screwed Generation." The author postulates that the post-war generation of Baby Boomers has ruined the American dream for the current twenty-somethings, the Millennials. Boomers came of age in a golden economy, with good housing and job markets, yet Millennials have had dismal outlooks in both. Kotkin explores polarities like these in the experiences of the two generations. Millennials may not have had the advantages of Boomers, but they are the future of the country. The author uses compelling evidence to argue that Generation Y is, as he indelicately phrases it, "screwed."
In “Generation Nice” published in the August 17, 2014, edition of the New York Times, Sam Tanenhaus debunks the older generations’ belief that millennials are self-absorbed. The author provides a different idea of millennials. Tanenhaus believes that the millennials generation will change the world. The author states that the millennials to center on the world. Pew research center found this generation is not narcissistic, but they’re complicated, thoughtful and understanding.
Throughout history, the newest generation is always claimed as the most lazy, narcissistic, and self centered generation yet, and each previous generation disregards the reasons why the new generation acts the way they do. However, Joel Stein expertly brings to light in his article,“Why the Millennials Will Save Us All”, the fact that “They [the new generation] are not a new species; they've just mutated to adapt to their environment,” (Stein 4). Stein starts his article bashing on the millennials, utilizing a conversational tone and effective use of ethos and logos to draw the reader in. But halfway through the article, his tone suddenly changes along with his purpose as he analyzes his own life to shows how his own generation has the same
Over 70 years has passed since the end of World War II, and since that time our society has seen 4 generations transition into the next on a bridge scarcely understood by those preceding or following them. These cohorts are known in their chronological order as The Baby Boomers (born 1946 – 1965), Generation X (born 1965 – 1981), The Millennials (1981 – 1994), and now The Centennials (born 1994 – early 2000s), or Generation Z, a group whose exact demographics are still largely undefined. The disparity between the Millennials and their postwar predecessors, The Baby Boomers, can be noted by studying characteristics of each generation, and how the socioeconomic factors surrounding war and technology have shaped them. While their basic needs and core similarities are innately human, objectively speaking, their views, biases and outlooks have most certainly been impacted by the events and advancements of their time.
Growing up, most Millennials butt heads with their parents like every generation before us. Although a vast majority of Millennials have generation X parents. Growing up as a Millennial, technology became more advanced which seems to be the root of the disliking for us from every generation before us. Our parents are “America 's neglected middle child” and we the Millennials are the future of today. We excel with technology, but struggle with our income, causing us to push back commitments other generations would have already done. Millennials want access not ownership. A growing percent of us are putting off buying houses, marriage, children, and buying cars. Being so technologically advanced we look for convenience over hard work, even in our purchases, “57% of Millennials who compare prices in stores. (AIMIA Inc. “Born this Way: US Millennial Loyalty Survey” ©2012)” Online purchases are happening more than ever, with taking in the factor of good quality and prices. “Millennials have come of age during a time of technological change, globalization and economic disruption. That’s given them a different set of behaviors and experiences than their parents (© 2016 Goldman Sachs).” As I explore the differences and similarities of our two generations I will be discussing power distance, uncertainty avoidance, in group collectivism, institutional collectivism, gender egalitarianism, assertiveness, performance orientation, future orientation, and humane orientation.
Millennials are categorized in many differ ways. Some people believe Millennials are lazy and narcissistic while other people believe they are more open-minded confident, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat and receptive to new ideas and ways of living. This starts different disputes between individuals. For example, Hasan Piker argues Simon Sinek statements made in the video, “On Millennials in the Workplace.” Sinek uses his motivational speaking skills to persuade the audience that Millennials, people reaching young adulthood in the early 21st century, are catered to and entitled. He uses four examples that back up his reasoning: parenting, technology, impatience, and environment. In contrast, Piker responds differently, believing that Millennials work for their status. Piker argues Sinek’s views about Millennials in the video “Young Turks on Millennials.” Both Sinek and Piker use different rhetorical strategies to entertain and persuade their audience about Millennials.
Published in Time magazine on May 20, 2013, “The New Greatest Generation – Why Millennials Will Save Us All,” by Joel Stein, proposes that millennials are a generation of entitled, self-involved narcissists, but have the potential of bettering society. He begins the article by condemning them, then shifts his point and gives reasons why they are changing the way that the world is working. Although Joel Stein’s article includes factual information, it becomes ineffective due to its bias, generalizations, and euphemisms used to further his argument.
In an interview of 2016, Simon Sinek analyses and discusses the topic of Millennials within the workplace. Throughout Sinek’s speech in his interview, he explains the disadvantages which Millennials have faced while growing up in their generation. Now, Sinek claims that the reason why Millennials have been dealt such a “bad hand” in life, is a result of failed parenting strategies, and an imbalance of technology along with social media (which has advanced like never before within the adolescence of Millennials). Therefore, the imbalance of the internet and real-life interaction results in millennials being unable to form deep and meaningful relationships, in order to carry out happy and meaningful live in comparison to previous
Across the nation, people are talking about the Millennial generation and how different they are compared to others, but are they really that different? Millennials are lazy, entitled, and selfish, or as you may have heard may be essential to the modern workplace, either way, they are being talked about whether it is good or bad. To put it in other words, past generations are concerned for what the future will look like with this technology-dependent generation, but is that a bad thing if the technology is only going to advance from here on out? The older generation is being too harsh or are they just genuinely concerned about the future? Joel Stein (2013) has written an article about the Millennials, it is titled Millennials: The Me Me Me Generation he argues for them being a selfish generation but by saying that it is not a bad thing. The second article is by Liz Zarka (2017) Generation Me: The Millennial Generation’s obsession with being unique, she argues that they are the generation that needs to be concerned for. After reading both of these articles I agree with some of the points that both of these authors make, however, there are also some sections that I disagree with. My perception of the situation is that millennials may have all these negative characteristics but use them to an advantage that no other generation can has; along with the advancement of technology and the use of social media may have increased the narcissistic trait in them, but they use these traits to get what they want, however, being narcissistic isn’t always good there can certainly be some disadvantages.